Deepwater Drilling: Recommendations for a Safer Future

The National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling asked RFF experts to identify potential improvements in industry and government practice to reduce the risk of future catastrophic spills.

In August 2010, experts at RFF conducted a series of studies to help inform the investigations and recommendations of the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling. RFF was not asked to assess the technical causes of the spill; instead, the task was to help identify potential improvements in industry and government practices to reduce the risk of future catastrophic spills.

RFF experts in risk assessment, regulatory and cost–benefit analysis, government enforcement, and the oil industry formulated a series of findings and recommendations to improve the safety of future oil drilling operations.

Key Recommendations

Provide stronger incentives for industry to invest in safety, risk-reduction, and containment technologies.

Reform regulatory structures to adapt to deepwater drilling risks.

Strengthen the oversight capacity of institutions involved in offshore drilling.

On April 20, 2010, the Transocean Deepwater Horizon suffered a catastrophic blowout while drilling in a BP lease in the Gulf of Mexico’s Macondo Prospect. This accident resulted in the largest oil spill in US history and an unprecedented spill response effort.

The Premier of Alberta is in town promoting the Keystone XL pipeline. She fielded questions at the Brookings Institution, and regarding a question referring to last month’s spill in Arkansas said "these are very isolated incidents, and they don't happen as often as people might suggest that they could."

Shell Oil Company is seeking permits to drill exploratory oil wells in Arctic waters off the northern shores of Alaska. In light of the recent Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, does expanded Arctic oil drilling and production make economic sense for the United States? What effect would Arctic oil have on U.S. energy security, and what social costs and benefits would come into play if new drilling permits are granted?

The offshore oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has brought oil-related energy, liability, and regulatory issues back to the forefront. RFF's strong legacy of research and public events on these topics can provide context for the ongoing situation and analysis of the policy implications.
In August 2010, the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling asked RFF to conduct several studies that would help inform the Commission’s investigations and recommendations.

Those concerned about energy security usually advocate increasing drilling in the United States. But some argue that a better policy for promoting energy security would be instead to conserve domestic oil reserves—to set aside certain deposits, such as in the Gulf of Mexico, for use in an emergency.

Sealing of the leaking oil well in the Gulf of Mexico provides an opportune time to think about how ecosystems and coastal resources might be valued and how this information might be used to improve pollution and resource management policy.

One critical issue for litigation surrounding the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill is liability and damages for ecological harm caused by the disaster. In the latest issue of , RFF Senior Fellow James W. Boyd outlines current damage assessment practices under various federal statutes and their weaknesses, drawing on the lessons learned from the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill and similar incidents.